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Monday Night Raw Warm Up for April 30th, 2012

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WWE Champion C.M. Punk successfully defended his title last night against Chris Jericho at Extreme Rules in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois.

Coming off of the annual Extreme Rules pay-pre-view last night in Chicago and a three-hour Raw last week in Detroit, it’s fair to say the WWE Universe is currently in a weird place. Last week’s edition of Raw was haphazard and even with the bonus hour didn’t divide the time well for the Extreme Rules feuds, which were primarily rematches from WrestleMania XXVIII. Coming off the PPV, Brock Lesnar lost the battle, but may have won the war with John Cena who took a savage beating. Meanwhile, C.M. Punk defeated Chris Jericho in his hometown, avenging his family that had been drawn into Y2J’s crosshairs. This could mean some new feuds are starting at the top of the card tonight in Dayton, Ohio.

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I Don’t Even Like Marvel vol. 2 – A Guide to DC Heroics figures

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A few months back I wrote about Marvel’s Heroics figures. A series of tiny, blind boxed, 97 cent non-articulated figures. The figures walk an odd line between featuring detailed costumes while having almost blank faces. It was a sad tale about a quest for a Hulk or Captain America figure neither of which I found. This is a very different article. This is all about DC Heroics. And this time it didn’t matter who was in the plastic balls, because I wanted them all anyway. I’m a sucker for all things DC. Always have been. One thing I learned in purchasing this batch of DC figures is that if you turn the plastic ball so that the wrapper runs perpendicular to the split in the ball, you can place just a little pressure on the crack and it will open enough to allow you a peek at what figure is in the ball without actually opening it. Blind box foiled!

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Standard Deviations vol. 11:
Marvel’s Avengers “Art Appreciation” variants

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This installment of Standard Deviations takes a look at April 2012’s set of Avengers “Art Appreciation” variants. Released in anticipation of the of the premiere of Marvel Studios’ shared universe film epic The Avengers on May 4th, these images specifically feature characters that are among the film’s cast as opposed to drawing on the huge number that can be counted among their ranks on the printed page. These covers take a note from 2009’s Wolverine Art Appreciation variants in paying homage to a host of classic artists and styles, and it’s nice to see the theme revisited. With that in mind, this post is part of a Standard Deviations double feature today as we look at both entries in Marvel’s Art Appreciation collection.

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Standard Deviations vol. X (10):
Wolverine “Art Appreciation” variants

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This installment of Standard Deviations takes us back to the Spring of 2009 as Marvel Comics produced a set of “Art Appreciation” variants as part of their celebration of Wolverine’s 35th anniversary. The books also coincided with the release of Fox’s Wolverine: Origins in theaters around the world on May 1st of that year. With another movie featuring Marvel characters debuting next week, the publisher has opted to do a follow up set of Avengers Art Appreciation variants throughout April of this year. This post is part of a Standard Deviations double feature today as we look at both entries in Art Appreciation collection.

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My Latest Pull List – April 25th, 2012

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Weekly comic books are a big part of my life and I’ve been thinking of sharing something regularly on MLD for some time now. I just discovered a feature within Comixology’s pull list app (which I’ve been using for years) to share my list along with cover artwork and previews.

This is a somewhat lighter week for me than last with eight new books on my list. Three are Avengers versus X-Men tie-ins (plus the first issue of the “AvX VS” series), but they’re all titles I regularly buy.

  • AQUAMAN #8 – I’m still still surprised by just how good this series has been. I need to read #7, but the mysteries of Atlantis are shaping another intriguing story arc.
  • ASTONISHING X-MEN #49 – Another book I’ve fallen behind on. I still read this title like it’s shipping every six months.
  • AVX VS. #1 – Magneto vs. Iron Man, Thing vs. Namor. This could be a lot of fun, but AvX #2 already seemed like a lot of fighting and this might not add much.
  • NEW AVENGERS #25 – So far Brian Bendis’ Avengers tie-ins for AvX haven’t really been for me (the Walt Simonson art on last week’s Avengers #25 helped), but I tend to appreciate his event books more from a distance.
  • SECRET AVENGERS #26 – This could be a great AvX tie-in as a team takes to outer space to intercept the Phoenix.
  • THE TWELVE #12 – I don’t even know if I have all of these. The book began being published in 2008, but it feels like it’s been running since the ’40s when these characters debuted.
  • UNCANNY X-MEN #11 – Another AvX tie-in, and while Red Hulk vs. Colossus/Juggernaut doesn’t thrill me, Kieron Gillen’s work on this book has. Of course, there’s also the Greg Land art to consider…
  • X-MEN: LEGACY #265 – This book has grown on me since Christos Gage took over. The solicit suggests a “friend from the past” may save the day and I’m honestly intrigued by the possibilities.

Check back every week to see what’s on My Latest Pull List and please share your thoughts on these titles, along with everything you’re reading, in the comments.